Tom Binns

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Tom Binns
Born Christopher Thomas Binns
1970
Sheffield, South Yorkshire
Occupation Writer, actor, comic

Tom Binns is a British writer, actor, comic, television presenter and radio presenter.

Career

Tom Binns won the Best International Act at the New Zealand International Comedy Festival 2013. He was nominated at the Edinburgh Festival for the Edinburgh Comedy Award 2007 – as the hospital radio DJ Ivan Brackenbury. He has been twice nominated for the Adelaide Fringe Comedy Award in 2010 and 2011. He was voted a Fosters Comedy God in 2010. He was nominated for a Chortle Comedy Award in 2011 and was also named in a list of their 50 Most Memorable Gigs of the decade. In 2002 the readers of More Magazine voted him the 25th Sexiest Man in The World.

His most recent character is Ian D Montfort, a psychic from Sunderland. He first performed the character at the 2010 Edinburgh Fringe. A pilot of the show was broadcast in 2012, and a series, Ian D Montfort is Unbelievable, followed on BBC Radio 2 in February 2013.

He appears in the BBC MI5 drama Spooks (Episode 6 Series 6), Series 3 of the IT Crowd on Channel 4, and, in character as Ivan Brackenbury, on BBC Radio 2 as part of The Jason Byrne Show. "Knowing Me Knowing Yule with Alan Partridge" BBC 2

Besides writing comedy for television and radio Binns has appeared on other television shows, such as RI:SE, Bullrun, Oblivion and as a writer on Trigger Happy TV, which he gained recognition for as he earned "The best comedy moment" and "TV moment of 2001" awards. His first television appearances were Friday Night Armistice (BBC2) and Lee and Herring's Fist of Fun, and has gone on to further appear in the Channel 4-based late night sports talk show Under the Moon, with Danny Kelly and stage appearances at the Bloomsbury Theatre and Garrick Theatre.

Binns has also worked at several other radio stations with similar positions on Radio 1, Virgin, BRMB and GLR, either as himself or his Hospital Radio Character, Ivan Brackenbury, as well as on Virgin Radio and has hosted talk shows on Talksport UK, Hallam FM, Sheffield and Key 103, Manchester.

Tom has written a deeply ironic book How to Get Famous - A Cynical Guide.[1] Although he has recorded many pilots for TV shows, including his own chat show on Channel 5 and the UK version of Hollywood Squares.

As well as writing comedy sketches, his role as a radio presenter gained notoriety, due to his behaviour on the radio programme, The Tom Binns Breakfast Show on London-based Xfm, which led to three complaints being filed with Ofcom and a £50,000 fine given to Xfm. At the time, this was the largest fine levied by the authority. In his show, Binns was very critical of the new Blair government and shortly before the complaints were lodged, Capital Radio were approached by representatives of the Blair government requesting that he be removed from the schedule.[citation needed] The fine was based on the use of coarse sexual innuendo when discussing a bestial pornography video with a listener. The comments only led to complaints when the show was edited and rebroadcast by Xfm in a weekend compilation show.[2] Capital Radio decided not to sack Binns but in a meeting shortly after the fine was issued the Radio Authority made it clear to Capital Radio that this would have a negative impact on the decision to renew the XFM licence.

In December 2009, Binns was fired from BRMB by its owners Orion Media after he cut short the Queen's Christmas Message. The Message was played into his show in error instead of the expected two-minute news bulletin. Binns joked, "Two words bore-ring". He then went on to joke that British Monarchy can't be as good for tourism as some people claim because "the French executed theirs and people still visit France". He then played a George Michael record with the link "from one Queen to another".[3][4]

Live credits

  • 2007: Ivan Brackenbury's Hospital Radio Roadshow
  • 2008: Ivan Brackenbury's Christmas Show
  • 2009: Ivan Brackenbury's Disease Hour
  • 2010: Ivan Brackenbury's Hospital Radio Remix
  • 2010: Ian D Montfort: Touching the Dead[5]
  • 2011: Ian D Montfort: Spirit Comedium
  • 2012: Ian D Montfort: Unbelievable
  • 2012: Tom Binns does Ivan Brackenbury and others
  • 2013: Ian D Montfort: Psychic Fayre

TV Credits

Radio credits

  • Fist of Fun on BBC Radio 1
  • Digital Update on BBC Radio 1
  • The Ivan Brackenbury Show on BBC Radio 2
  • The Jason Byrne Show on BBC Radio 2
  • 99p Challenge on BBC Radio 4
  • Ian D Montfort is Unbelievable on BBC Radio 2

Awards & Accolades

Binns has received several accolades:

  • Melody Maker readers voted his show best of the year in 1999.
  • More magazine readers voted him as the 25th sexiest man in the world 2002
  • Nominee for the if.comedy award at the Edinburgh Festival 2007
  • Nominee for Best Established Comedian at the Adelaide Fringe 2010 and 2011
  • Chortle Award Nominee 2011 Best Character Comic
  • Best International Act New Zealand International Comedy Festival 2013

See also

List of if.comedy and Perrier comedy award winners

References

  1. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. – Article describing the nature of complaints against Tom Binns on Xfm
  3. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. – News report on Tom Binns being sacked from Orion Media Group
  4. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links